Senate confirms Mullin as DHS secretary

Rebecca Falconer

A bearded man in a dark blue suit and striped tie, Senator Markwayne Mullin, speaks at a wooden panel desk in a formal hearing, with a blurred audience behind; a nameplate reads "SENATOR" in front. — Sen. Markwayne Mullin on Capitol Hill last month. Photo: Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) was confirmed to succeed Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in a 54-45 vote mostly along party lines on Monday evening.

Why it matters: The vote comes as Homeland Security is at the center of funding impasse that has caused hours-long lines at airports nationwide with Democrats demanding new curbs on ICE before they'll agree to more funding.

DHS is central to President Trump's mass deportation agenda, but the agency's heavy-handed tactics provoked outrage after federal agents fatally shot Minneapolis residents Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good.

The big picture: Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chair Rand Paul (R-Ky.) was the only Republican to vote against Mullin's confirmation.

Paul had confronted Mullin during the confirmation hearing, saying to the Oklahoma senator "tell me to my face" why Paul deserved an assault that left him with broken ribs.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and fellow Democrat Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) voted to confirm Mullin.

Go deeper: Sen. Markwayne Mullin's secret war zone past

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Senate confirms Mullin as DHS secretary

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